A plane crashed Tuesday morning at the Spencer J. Hardy Airport in Howell Township.

Livingston County Sheriff Mike Murphy confirmed that two people were killed when a single engine four-passenger Aero Commander 200D crashed at approximately 11:20am. Deputies from the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office, Howell Area Fire, and Livingston County EMS, responded to the scene.

The National Transportation Safety Board has been notified and will be in charge of the investigation. Elizabeth Isham Cory, who handles External Communications/Public Affairs for the Federal Aviation Administration, told WHMI that the FAA will release the aircraft’s tail number after investigators verify it. "Neither the FAA nor the NTSB release the names of aircraft occupants. We defer to local officials to make that information available at the appropriate time. The investigation will take a year or more to complete."

Nick Spaniola of Oceola Township witnessed the crash and says he and a co-worker were heading back to work from lunch and stopped at the light at M-59 and Grand River. He says they caught a glimpse of the plane as it immediately banked hard left and came down, adding there was no explosion or flames that were visible. "It was like paper airplane that you'd throw and fall to the side. It didn't seem to have any power." He says they immediately drove over to Tooley Road and called 911.

The Associated Press reports that the plane appears to be registered with the FAA by an aircraft registration company in the United Kingdom. The registration company, Southern Aircraft Consultancy Inc., assists non-U.S. citizens with legally registering their planes with the FAA. (JK)